The Ancient Person We Know Most About

Summary by Krater

This video examines the survival rate of ancient Greco-Roman literature and historical figures, comparing the literary records of statesmen, emperors, and writers like Cicero and Saint Augustine.

From the video

Answers: How much of ancient Greco-Roman literature and historical writing actually survived?

• ancient Greco-Roman literature survival
• historical sources and records
• Cicero's works and letters
• Saint Augustine's writings
• Marcus Aurelius meditations

What it concludes

• Most non-elite ancient lives passed without written notice and the few records made have mostly vanished.
• We know most about people who featured prominently in extant literary sources, such as authors who included autobiographical information in their works.
• Even at the highest political level, literary sources for emperors like Trajan are surprisingly scanty.
• Cicero's surviving speeches, treatises, and thousands of letters provide an unusually detailed look into his life and mind.
• Saint Augustine's extensive surviving works, including his 252 books and 400 sermons, total nearly 5.5 million words, far surpassing Cicero's output and making Augustine the best-documented ancient person.